Printable Version: RFC1160.PDF
RFC 1160 The IAB May 1990
Dr. Stephen D. Crocker as a means of documenting the development of
the original ARPANET protocol suite [RFC 1000]. The editor-in-chief
of this series, Dr. Jonathan B. Postel, has maintained the quality of
and managed the archiving of this series since its inception. A
small proportion of the RFCs document Internet standards. Most of
them are intended to stimulate comment and discussion. The small
number which document standards are especially marked in a "status"
section to indicate the special status of the document. An RFC
summarizing the status of all standard RFCs is published regularly
[RFC 1140].
RFCs describing experimental protocols, along with other submissions
whose intent is merely to inform, are typically submitted directly to
the RFC editor. A Standard Protocol starts out as a Proposed
Standard and may be promoted to Draft Standard and finally Standard
after suitable review, comment, implementation and testing.
Prior to publication of a Proposed Standard RFC, it is made available
for comment through an on-line Internet-Draft directory. Typically,
these Internet-Drafts are working documents of the IAB or of the
working groups of the Internet Engineering and Research Task Forces.
Internet-Drafts are either submitted to the RFC editor for
publication or discarded within 3-6 months. Prior to promotion to
Draft Standard or Standard, an Internet-Draft publication and review
cycle may be initiated if significant changes to the RFC are
contemplated.
The IAB performs the following functions:
1) Sets Internet Standards,
2) Manages the RFC publication process,
3) Reviews the operation of the IETF and IRTF,
4) Performs strategic planning for the Internet, identifying
long-range problems and opportunities,
5) Acts as an international technical policy liaison and
representative for the Internet community, and
6) Resolves technical issues which cannot be treated within
the IETF or IRTF frameworks.
To supplement its work via electronic mail, the IAB meets quarterly
to review the condition of the Internet, to review and approve
proposed changes or additions to the TCP/IP suite of protocols, to
set technical development priorities, to discuss policy matters which
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